www.montlucontourisme.com. Montlucon gathers pleasantly around its elevated old town and 15thC château. On place Piquant, the distinctly home-spun Maison ‘Vieux Montlu√笵con’ offers a selection of dusty Gallo-Roman remains, lace bonnets and antique photographs of old codgers with 3 m-long beards.

Grande Rue leads up to pretty place de Notre-Dame and its welcoming cafés, above which the Château-Musée des Dues de Bourgogne looks out over town to the distant mountains. In addition to regional history and crafts displays, the château also houses a splendid collection of traditional hurdy-gurdies all lovingly carved and ornamented.